With the men’s team struggling, the women’s hockey team is only a single win away from a playoff berth in its freshman year. Making the ECAC Hockey League playoffs in its first year of eligibility would be another step forward and solid proof that the team belongs with the powerhouses of this long-established conference.
The Engineers are looking forward to their final games of the season at home with fans in the Houston Field House this weekend. “We’re excited to be back home for our last weekend and having a big home crowd come out against our arch-rivals Clarkson,” said Head Coach John Burke.
This past weekend was a disappointment for the team as they first dropped Friday’s game to Yale (4-3), and then Saturday’s to Brown (4-1). Even as it failed to pick up that final win, RPI capitalized on several nice opportunities throughout the weekend and remained competitive for the entire game.
“No question, Friday we had a few mistakes but created a bunch of offensive chances,” said Burke. “We did a great job battling back and showed a lot of resolve,” he added.
Saturday’s New Haven, Conn. match-up started with a strong showing by the Bulldogs as they were out-shot in the first but still managed to find the twine. The second period was Yale’s as well, it went up 3-0 before a momentum changing goal by sophomore forward Nicole McDonald. “That gave us a lot of life, it was a big shift for us,” said Burke. “Nicole had her first really strong weekend for us, she played really well,” he added.
“It gave us our momentum back, put us back in the game,” said McDonald of the goal just before the second intermission.
RPI’s next goal was also assisted by McDonald when junior Brooke Thompson made it 3-2 on a power play goal midway through the third period. It took Yale less than 20 seconds to respond with its own, making it a 4-2 game. Sophomore Jamie-Lynn Stewart scored off an assist by freshman Laura Gersten in the final minute, but it was not enough to break the Bulldogs as the game ended 4-3.
Yale improved to 14-10-2, 9-8-2 in the league.
Heading to Providence, RI for the next night’s game, the Engineers would have a tough start as Brown scored on two power plays within 30 seconds during the first period. Although the visitors missed seven power play opportunities and didn’t score, they did feel good about their execution.
Freshman Allison Wright was credited with the assist on classmate Allysen Weidner’s goal early in the second period, but the Bears charged back scoring twice more before the game ended. Brown is now 10-15-2 overall and 6-13-1 in league play.
“We wanted to take the weekend, but it just wasn’t clicking,” McDonald said. “This puts us in a position where we have to work for this weekend.”
The upcoming games against Clarkson and St. Lawrence will be the most important games of the season as the playoffs loom. A single win is all the team needs to secure a spot. “We’re starting to mentally focus,” said McDonald. If the Engineers do get into the playoffs, “It’ll prove something to the other schools and that we’re not a push-over team,” she finished.
Coach Burke is confident that his team has the skills and preparation to finish the season on a high note if they “continue to generate offensive opportunities and put in the same defensive commitment as the Harvard and Dartmouth games,” describing this weekend as “an opportunity to take care of business.”
